This invention relates generally to apparatus for crushing large lumps of minerals such as coal, ore, and bulk materials such as overburden, and in particular to such apparatus having an improved crushing roll and conveyor system.
Crushing apparatus of the kind under consideration is well known in the prior art as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 3,698,648 which discloses a grid for receiving coal dumped from railroad cars and crushed by a carriage-mounted rotating shaft having radial hammer-like projections for striking and reducing the large lumps of material as the shaft traverses the grid. The reduced material falls into a hopper and is conveyed to a remote point for processing. In this apparatus the drive means for the shaft is mounted on one of the carriages and the carriages are pulled back and forth over the grid by a chain and sprocket system attached to the carriages and extending lengthwise of the grid.
The shaft drive system of U.S. Pat. No. 3,698,648 is separate from the rotating shaft and must therefore be connected to the shaft by a conventional pulley or gear drive system both of which suffer from the disadvantage of operating in an exposed, dust-laden environment. In addition, the use of a conventional hopper and conveyor system below the grid tends to limit the width of the grid.
The present apparatus overcomes these and other disadvantages in a manner not disclosed in the known prior art.